Hollyoaks' Ste Hay may have reached the point of no return in his right-wing radicalisation storyline, after making a horrifying decision in Friday's first-look episode (June 14).
The conflict between Ste's (Kieron Richardson) real family and evil racist Jonny Baxter (Ray Quinn) have ramped up in recent episodes, after Jonny inducted Ste into his far-right group The Brotherhood.
In hopes of getting Ste to see the light, Peri Lomax (Ruby O'Donnell) and Yasmine Maalik (Haiesha Mistry) stole a toothbrush from Jonny's home in order to have his DNA tested. In Friday's episode, the teens tried sharing the truth with Ste.
Although Leela (Kirsty-Leigh Porter) was initially outraged to hear that the girls had broken into Jonny's house in order to get the toothbrush, she was secretly hoping the results would vindicate their doubt in Jonny as well.
The truth finally came to light at The Dog, when Peri and Yasmine revealed to Ste the results of the DNA test: Jonny is not his brother!
"That man there is a liar," Leela told a stunned Ste, before turning to Jonny, asking: "Is that what you do? Target people for your sick, fascist gang?"
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Ste initially seemed furious with The Brotherhood, accusing them of manipulating him into adopting their agenda of hate because he was "an easy target".
Ste stormed out of The Dog and back to his own flat, where he angrily stared at his Brotherhood initiation tattoo in the mirror.
Outside of The Dog, Jonny and Stuart (Chris Simmons) were trying to explain their lies to Leela and the others, only to be interrupted by a returning Ste!
Related: 7 ways Hollyoaks has broken new ground with Ste Hay's controversial far-right racism storyline
Even though Peri apologised for the way she broke the news to him, Ste stunned her by making excuses for Jonny. Ste even claimed he'd always suspected it wasn't a certainty Jonny was his biological brother.
Furthermore, because Jonny made Ste feel like he fit in with 'a family', Ste decided to continue standing behind the far-right agitator.
"I don't care about the test," Ste told Peri. "He's still my brother."
Is there any possibility for redemption at this point? Earlier this week, Kieron Richardson warned Digital Spy that Ste's path will only get darker following his decision to stand by The Brotherhood.
"There's loads of horrible bits that the viewers will have to watch, but it's not a light, fluffy storyline," he explained. "It's the way that it's got to be told.
"I know that it's uncomfortable to watch, but it has to be like that. Imagine how uncomfortable it is for the people who actually have to live through this."
Kieron has also expressed fears that Ste could ultimately end up as one of serial killer Breda McQueen's victims.
Hollyoaks airs Mondays through Fridays at 6.30pm on Channel 4, with first-look episodes airing on E4 at 7pm.
Read more news, spoilers and gossip on our Hollyoaks homepage
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